Nest Hub (gen 2) Bluetooth to nest mini sharing

[savbonura11]

hi,

Have an issue, which is really annoying, just wondering if anyone can advise or tell me that this is the way it is!

so i have nest wifi with a mesh point and 2 nest minis which i really just use as speakers dotted around the living room. so usually i would connect to one of the nest minis via Bluetooth, then jump on the Google home app > media > select the other nest mini and the mesh point/speaker so i get music playing around the house, which works great for me, although i did find that the nest mini Bluetooth tends to drop out. 

so with that in mind i bought a nest hub (gen 2) so i can use that as my central hub so i can connect to that and then play my music and then select my nest minis in the google home app.

 i can connect to the hub via Bluetooth and play my music fine, the issue comes when i jump into the google home app > media and then when i try to select the nest minis to play the music on, they're not on the list all i see is literally just the Nest Hub from which I'm playing the music from. i even go onto the Nest Hub display and select 'broadcast' but still no other speaker in the list. 

This only happens connected via Bluetooth to the Nest Hub. When connected to one of the minis or the mesh speaker, all devices are visible to share to (even the hub)  when playing Apple Music straight from the Google home app it also works fine and sees all devices.  My preferred choice is Bluetooth though,  as it gives me more control to choose the music, when im playing it directly from the Google home there's no interface to choose anything and it's not ideal to keep speaking to google assistant asking it to play certain albums/songs/playlists.

is this normal ? how do i combat it? if anyone else has a hub and a mini are you having the same issue?

[Dan_A]

Hi savbonura11,

This is not the experience we want you to have, let me help you. A few questions: when did your issue begin? Were there any recent changes made? 

It would help a lot if you could do a sequential reboot first: 

1. Unplug the power cord of your router, followed by your Nest speakers.
2. Plug them back in after 3 minutes.
3. Restarting your phone might also help.

Once done, try to replicate your concern and tell me how it goes. Also, to just a heads up, we do have our own feature where you can play music to all speakers by putting them in a speaker group. As long as you link your music service to Google Home, you can play music. There are certain restrictions when it comes to Bluetooth connectivity, depending on the devices you use.

Hope this helps.

Best,

Dan

[savbonura11]

The issue began from the moment i unboxed my nest hub and set it up. Nothing else  changed. Ive tried restarting everything

[Dan_A]

Hi savbonura11,

Since this is a case of may or may not work depending on the integration between devices, also, Bluetooth functionality is best used between 2 devices only. Why don’t we try to set them up as a speaker group and have them play a song. Let’s see the difference.

To create a speaker group, follow these steps:

1. Make sure your mobile device or tablet is connected to the same Wi-Fi or linked to the same account as your speaker or display.
2. Open the Google Home app.
3. At the top left, tap Add > Create speaker group.
4. Tap each device you want to add to the group. A check will appear next to each device you select.
5. Tap Next > enter a name for your group > Save.

To manage your speaker group, see this guide.

Keep me posted.

Regards,

Dan

[savbonura11]

Ive tried putting them all in a speaker group and it still doenst work. It finds the speaker group but doesn't load it. The speaker group works in general.. just not when commected to bluetooth on the hub. 

it works fine when connected to bluetooth on the mini and plays on more than 3 devices fine. Issue just follows nest hub

[Dan_A]

Hey there,

The speaker group is not applicable when using Bluetooth since the Bluetooth function only works with a single device. A 1:1 ratio. For confirmation, the issue only happens when you add the Nest Hub to your speaker group, right? 

Best regards,

Dan

[savbonura11]

Nope.  So the way it works… Or the way i use it (which is my preferred way) -

I have nest minis/speakers (lets call them nest mini 1, nest mini 2 & Nest Hub) dotted around the house. (all are 2nd gen)

I connect to nest mini 1 via Bluetooth, play my audio fine. I can then go onto the Google home app, go to the media icon. Where it detects I'm playing Bluetooth from nest mini 1 and then below gives me the list of speakers/speaker groups I can share the audio to. So I can then select nest mini 2 & Nest Hub and, viola!, my Bluetooth audio (connected to nest mini 1) is playing on all the selected speakers around the house. If they're all added into a speaker group, they work the same, I just select the speak group as opposed to them individually

If I connected Bluetooth to nest mini 2. It works as it's supposed to (as above)...

If connected to Nest Hub. It connects to Bluetooth.it plays. But when I go to share the audio to the others, it doesn't list them when I go onto the Google home app > media. Nor does it list them physically on the Nest Hub display when I select 'broadcast'. It will show the speaker group. When I select the speaker group, it just loads ...  This is a problem for me as I kinda bought the Nest Hub to be the designated Bluetooth receiver as it's central and seems a bit more reliable as a Bluetooth device.

In addition. When I play my Apple Music directly through the Google home app (no Bluetooth connected to any device). I can select all the speakers (nest mini 1, 2 and Nest Hub) and they all work in perfect harmony as they are supposed to.  i COULD use it that way, but you can't choose songs and as there is no interface to control Apple Music. Which isn't ideal. doesn't really give me freedom to pick what i want. 

[savbonura11]

An update: There is one thing i noticed. Both nest minis are 2.4ghz and the nest hub display is 5ghz .. could this be the reason.. and secondly if it is.. how can i force them onto the same frequency bearing in mind i have nest wifi. 

[Dan_A]

Hey there savbonura11,

Apologies for the late response. I’m glad you’re able to isolate your concern. To change Wi-Fi frequency/connection, follow these steps:

Set up your speaker or display on the new Wi-Fi network:

1. Open the Google Home app.
2. At the top left, tap Add > Set up device > New device > set up new devices in your home.
3. Follow the in-app steps.

If these steps don’t solve the issue, you’ll need to factory reset your speaker or display, then set it up again.

If your speaker or display is connected to an existing Wi-Fi network, but you'd like to connect it to a new one, follow the steps below:

1. Open the Google Home app.
2. Touch and hold your device's tile.
3. At the top-right corner, tap Settings > Device information.
4. Next to 'Wi-Fi', tap Forget. You’ll be taken back to the Home app home screen.
5. Follow the setup steps to set up your device on the new Wi-Fi network.

If you get an error message that says 'could not communicate with your [device]' when you try to forget your network, or the steps above don't work, you'll need to factory reset your device and set it up again.

Kind regards,

Dan

[Dan_A]

Hello again,

I wanted to follow up and see if you still need help. Please let me know if you are still having any concerns or questions from here, as I would be happy to take a closer look and assist you further.

Regards,

Dan

[Dan_A]

Hey there,

We haven't heard from you in a while so we'll be locking this thread if there is no update within 24 hours. If you need assistance or want to discuss topics, feel free to start a new thread.
 

Cheers,

Dan